It’s Not Just About Your Wallet. It’s About the Planet. Accelerating Deal Velocity to Meet Climate Goals

As the world races to decarbonize the economy and meet ambitious climate goals, the mantras "deploy, deploy, deploy" or "build, build, build" have never been more relevant – or urgent. However, manual processes and outdated systems are bottlenecking transaction speeds, hindering the ability to capitalize on the growing sustainability market opportunities. Accelerating deal origination and execution isn't just about market success, though; it's about fulfilling the climate goals the world desperately needs to meet.

The Need for Speed in the Green Economy

Speed isn't always the answer. In fact, in some cases, businesses have the luxury of approaching projects in a slow, carefully considered, and sometimes painstaking laborious manner. In the realm of project finance, however, both speed and pragmatism are essential. But how is that possible? With appropriate digital infrastructure, combining speed and pragmatism becomes the relative norm. We're not saying it's easy (okay, yes, we are), but implementing a digital solution will take some trust when eliminating the traditional strategies that have hamstrung companies for years.

The time to act is now, with this urgency to act driven by two things: the availability of substantial capital and the pressing need to address climate change.

‍To achieve net zero by 2050, annual investment in low-emission capital stock must increase by by $3.5 trillion. However, global investment in sustainable infrastructure only reached $1.8 trillion in 2023, indicating a significant gap that needs bridging over the next 20 years. This can feel incredibly frustrating, especially considering the fact that there is currently over $120 trillion in global capital available for deployment in sustainable infrastructure.

But even if businesses are ready to spend, how can they manage such a vast number of projects across thousands of miles of terrain with multiple stakeholders, contracts, and regulators? Currently, sustainable infrastructure investors and developers are not set up for success in achieving these urgent climate goals. It's time to change that.  

Manual Processes as a Bottleneck

Too many organizations in the Green Economy rely on manual data entry and fragmented systems. These outdated methods lead to gross inefficiencies and slow deal processes. Fragmented communication due to disjointed systems can cause confusion and delays. Similarly, convoluted processes involving multiple steps and approvals without a streamlined workflow create bottlenecks and high staff turnover, which results in skilled employees bogged down by mundane administrative tasks. Frankly, we think it's unacceptable how many projects have resulted in lost time, increased costs, and sometimes failed deals.

Furthermore, the reliance on traditional processes slows down deal origination and execution. For instance, when different stakeholders—including investors, developers, and banks—use disparate systems for managing their data, it creates data silos. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools, financial software, project management applications, and data storage solutions often do not integrate seamlessly, resulting in information being stored in isolated systems.

Because these data silos necessitate manual data entry, the risk of errors and inconsistencies increases. Without a unified system, errors also become harder to detect, causing miscommunication, delays in approvals and decisions, and increased costs due to these mistakes. Storing and utilizing crucial information in different places is no longer viable; data, systems, and processes must be consolidated into a Single Source of Truth to ensure organizations and stakeholders are aligned and operating as efficiently as possible.

The Solution: Automating and Streamlining Workflows

To move quicker and drive efficiencies without sacrificing investment quality, organizations need a robust software solution that automates and streamlines workflows, eliminating the reliance on manual processes and disparate systems. Banyan Infrastructure offers a comprehensive solution that addresses these challenges by providing a single source of truth, workflow automation, automated approvals and notifications, and more.

Banyan Infrastructure's solution consolidates all deal-related data into a single, accessible platform, ensuring the accuracy and availability of data for all stakeholders. This unified source of truth enhances transparency on covenants, compliance, impact metrics, and deal information across all counterparties. The platform also supports workflow automation, eliminating redundant steps and integrating processes to speed up deal execution. Modular templates for deal checklists, scorecards, due diligence questionnaires, and forms ensure consistency and reduce the time needed for each deal stage.

Automated approvals and notifications streamline deal activities and deliverables, automatically alerting team members and counterparties about deal activities via emails and in-app notifications. This proactive communication reduces delays and keeps everyone informed. Additionally, the platform allows for the generation of standard forms on-demand using existing deal and project-level details, reducing the need for manual document creation and ensuring consistency.

Custom portfolio creation enables live reporting and ongoing risk management tailored to specific portfolios, allowing for better monitoring and adjustment of investment strategies in real-time. Automated data collection through integrations and manual submissions with approval workflows directly from Banyan's interface reduces the need for manual data entry and ensures data accuracy. Built-in collaboration tools enhance teamwork and communication across all stages of the deal lifecycle.

Real-World Impact

The benefits of Banyan Infrastructure's solution are evident in real-world applications. For example, SMBC reduced deal completion time from 70 hours to 35 hours using Banyan Infrastructure's platform, significantly improving efficiency and improving deal velocity.

Barclays highlighted the high costs associated with closing deals manually, emphasizing the need for streamlined processes, while ClimateFirst Bank expanded rapidly across multiple states by leveraging standardized and repeatable systems.

The ability to move quickly and efficiently is not just a competitive advantage; it's a necessity. With more than $60 billion at risk of being left on the table if financial institutions do not improve their capital deployment efficiencies, the stakes are high. Automating and streamlining processes will unlock this potential, allowing institutions to seize market opportunities and contribute to global sustainability goals.

Moving Forward

The path to meeting our climate goals demands rapid and efficient deal origination and execution. By embracing automation and creating a single source of truth, organizations can eliminate bottlenecks, reduce costs, and accelerate their ability to deploy capital into sustainable projects. Banyan Infrastructure's comprehensive solutions are designed to help organizations achieve this, ensuring they are well-positioned to capitalize on the burgeoning green economy and drive meaningful progress toward a sustainable future.